[Hollinger] Best under-the-radar free agents.

The problem is not finding undervalued players. (Most of those listed have had multiple mentions in the GARM and most have had whole threads dedicate to them). The problem is finding the money to pay for them when all you have is a $5.5M MLE. And it's that exact MLE that must also be handed out to keep Wafer and/or any of the 2nd Round pics and/or Flight White.

 

Link, please?

 

We have to use our MLE to retain the second round picks? I didn't realize that.

 

I have the feeling that Gortat would somehow end up like Ben Wallace, everyone keeps saying how underrated he has been that eventually he can walk away with a ridicuously overrated contract

 

-- White is already under contract. We gave him partially guaranteed money for this upcoming season when we originally signed him last year. Does not affect the MLE whatsoever (nice move by Morey, eh?).

-- We don't HAVE to use the MLE for the 2nd round picks. In the past couple years, we've done it in order to enable a 3rd year under team control (Dorsey, Novak, but not Landry coincidentally). The vast majority of 2nd rounders sign for the minimum, which does not come out of the MLE.

-- My sense is Jermaine Taylor (one of those 2nd rounders who you claim takes a part of the MLE) is Wafer's replacement.

 

On that list, I'd be interested in Rodney Carney at a cheap price, Gortat obviously, Rasho at the minimum, and Marvin Williams would be an interesting target.

 

I don't get why there's been no word at all about Shawn Marion.

6-7 guy that can legitimately play both forward positions, good defender and glue guy with fair offense. He's on the downside of his career, but he'd still be a great role playing starter on a contending team.

 

Free agent wings we can target (from latest Rockets.com article). I'll include the comments from Rockets scout Pat Zipfel. For Jason Friedman's comments, click the link.

Hedo Turkoglu (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Scoring swingman who plays like a 2 offensively, but usually guards 3s (at 6-10). Likes to spot-up in transition, on ball rotation, and come off screens. Does more than just shoot as he can put the ball down, passes well, and is a good rebounder for his position. He can shoot the 3-point shot well for his size.

Trevor Ariza (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Young, athletic, improving player who is long and active. He is a runner, cutter, slasher, and gets on the glass. Likes to ball fake and escape to his right. Can pass off the dribble and his perimeter shooting is improving. Defensively, possesses length, quick feet + active hands, and will get on the floor. Effective defensively for steals and outstanding rebounder for his position.

Marvin Williams (Restricted)

Zipfel says: Developing player with good physical tools and size. Has a better face-up game and has improved greatly. Will shot fake and drive to his left and pull up for medium range jumper. Good rebounder and willing 3-point shooter.

Shawn Marion (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Multi-dimensional athlete. Excellent leaper who will look to get out on the break. Slasher who is a streaky shooter with range to 3-pt line. Will occasionally post left block, over left shoulder. Good offensive rebounder. Very active defender.

Linas Kleiza (Restricted)

Zipfel says: Strong body, great strength and a much improved player. He confidently is able to play multiple positions (2-3-4). Sprints the floor for lay-ups & spot-ups. Moves without the ball, a good cutter, & works on the offensive glass. Plays hard-nosed defense, rebounds & plays a physical style. Drives and is a two foot finisher in the lane.

Charlie Villanueva (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: He is long and a constant threat to shoot. He has a very soft jump shot for his size. When he faces up, he is ready to attack with a quick dribble. Has a quick release on his shot. Does a pretty good job of getting to the FT line and will initiate contact by lowering his shoulder. He can get from the 3 point line to the rim in 2 dribbles. Very agile. He has very good timing and jumps well. Does a good job on the defensive end of the floor.

Those minor complaints aside, however, he's a very intriguing prospect and it looks like the Detroit Pistons are doing everything in their power to reel him in.

Jamario Moon (Restricted)

Zipfel says: Athletic wing with a great physical body. He runs the floor very well and can finish. Attacks the glass on both ends of the floor and is a solid 19-foot shooter who has shown he can hit the 3-point shot. Good defender who uses his athleticism. Plays with passion every night. His length and mobility are his strengths.

Grant Hill (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Smooth swingman that can play three positions, understands the game, and is like having a coach on the floor. He is excellent at running the floor, driving to basket, and playing like a point forward. He is in great shape. Can lock up his man defensively. Can finish near the basket.

Matt Barnes (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Athletic small forward. A good runner and cutter with good leaping ability. Does have a quick first step to the basket. Prefers to ball fake and drive right. He has very good body control in the lane. Goes hard to the offensive glass.

Rodney Carney (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Athlete who can play above the rim. He runs the floor well and seems to have quick feet. Offensively, he can get in the lane quickly. He can leap and will challenge shots and rebound above the rim. Looks to leak out offensively, when he can. He has excellent catch-up speed in transition and does a good job of not giving up on plays. Has a good close out and gets to shooter to contest well. Can defend.

Ime Udoka (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Small forward who will run the floor and spot up. Spots up in the corner with three point range, especially following post feeds. Defensively, he is active with his hands and he knows how to play- has a very good basketball IQ. Plays within himself and takes what the defense gives him.

Desmond Mason (Unrestricted)

Zipfel says: Quick, athletic, good runner, + strong finisher. They look to post him and run drop plays for him. Has a right-to-left crossover, drives both ways, + has a good left hand. Will post smaller players and take bigger forwards outside. Prefers his left shoulder in the post. He has an excellent in-between game and really elevates in the lane. A high-energy player, defends and rebounds both ends.

 

Agreed ... and I think he'd be a good target if we were to be a contending team next year. Without Yao for most if not all of the season, I don't see that happening.

 

i like alot of those players especially if yao is out.

gortat of course.

if we dont get gortat how about gooden?

no artest?

i think frye or williams would be solid.

carney could be our athletic wing.

 

OK, reassessing the situation....

If Taylor is the next Wafer, he's a rotational player. On a team without Artest and with a huge question mark in Grady, Taylor becomes your starter. Seems foolish to offer him a 1 year deal.

Bottomline my statement is correct. Recognizing the players listed is a lot easier than putting a Rockets' uniform on them.

 

Exactly, interested in Carney, Rasho, Frye as fill-ins if we cannot sign Gortat, Wafer, or ZaZa.

I love Marvin Williams at this point, but the qualifying offer made by Atlanta was $7 million. That is too much at this point, especially if we are clearing cap space for a big name player next year. Heck that would paying a Battier replacement player more than Battier makes!

 

please put a link to the story next time?




It looks like everyone is trying to get in on Morey's kill. The league is watching us closely for our ability to pick the long shots.

 

You can do 2 year deals for the minimum.

Well, sure. It's easy to say I want LeBron as a Rocket.

But I don't get why you're being so dismissive -- I wouldn't deem it unreasonable to think the Rockets could potentially get 1-2 of these guys plus sign Taylor (and maybe Budinger too?) all comfortably within their MLE. Landing a Frye + a Carney would not seem to break the bank.

 

I'm probably going to get bashed for this because of his injury history and the fact that we've already got plenty of that to go around, but I wouldn't mind seeing us go after Grant Hill if we can get him very cheap. He actually put up decent numbers last year, and played in all 82 games. If we give Gortat most of our MLE and use the rest on our second rounders then I guess we don't have a chance unless it's through a sign and trade. If we could get him for the vet minimum I'd be estatic.

Pugs

 

PLEASE SIGN FRYE!!!

 

Rockets need to land a FA with MLE because expecting 2nd round draft picks to contribute is a joke.

Hopefully Taylor is indeed the one that slipped through the cracks because not many do just look at the last 5 years of 2nd round picks who made some splash:
Only 15 of the 150 players taken in the last 5 years were serious help to their teams, that is a 10% chance of getting help from a 2nd round pick.
Here they are:
'08 Chalmers/a'Moute were only players of aid to their teams.
'07 Carl Landry/Big Baby Davis/Ramon Sessions have been seriously used.
'06 Leon Powe/Paul Millsap/Craig Smith only ones with serious minutes.
'05 Monta Ellis/Brandon Bass/A. Blantche/Von Wafer
'04 Varejao/Chris Duhon/Trevor Ariza

The rest of the guys are either 10-12th men type or not in league.
Your odds just are not great on having the guy everyone slept on and Houston has been able to land two of them in Landry and picking up Wafer.
This team needs to rebuild via a young FA instead of banking on 2nd round picks.
Rodney Carney seems to be worth a low salary risk pickup if Wafer is not resigned. Problem with him is he is a TERRIBLE rebounder for 6-7 and he doesn't pass much and his 3 point shot needs work so he better be cheap.

 

Would you even want these guys? Most of the people on Hollinger's list do not help us at all. The only interesting ones are Gortat, Marvin Williams, and Sessions and it looks like all three might be unattainable.

You and GATER seem set on utilizing the MLE. The correct course would be to write off next year and eek out as much cap space as possible for next year's FA market. Even if the market is mostly hype it's still better than this year by far.